Under the Dice Fest 2025: Day 2

"No one should ever be caged."

In the past few years, the three of us at Between the Bolter and Me have made an effort to attend more gaming events and conventions, although, to be honest, we have primarily been attending events hosted by the Under the Dice/Hive Scum crew. May 16, 17, and 18 of this year was the 2nd Under the Dice Fest, and Adam and Greg made the trip to Connecticut to attend! The Under the Dice/Hive Scum crew have been tirelessly promoting the weirder and independent side of the miniature-based tabletop wargaming hobby. They have been shining a bright light on hobbyists who are interested in telling their own stories through miniature gaming, as well as those who are willing to step outside the scope of the game rules as written, or even create their games and miniatures, to do so. Every event they host is a gathering of amazing, like-minded people who are passionate about their interpretation of the miniature wargaming hobby, and something we do not want to miss.

The 2nd day of Under the Dice Fest 2025 featured this year’s New England Mordheim Open event, a competitive event for Games Workshop’s classic fantasy skirmish game, Mordheim. The event had an impressive 109 players battling over 54 lovingly crafted tables. Participants played three games throughout the event.

The skaven of Salvation's Effluence (totally_not_panicking) battle an adventuring band of halflings on a crumbling bridge.

Even the far shores of Lustria are not safe from adventurers seeking treasured wyrdstone. The board was built by Hive Scum’s very own Phil (bloodtrancefusion)!

Roaming bands of beastman scale the crumbling battlements of Mordheim, eager to enact violence. The model was painted by Ben (rusty_ferrule_miniatures). Listen to our interview with Ben here!

Years after Mordheim’s fall, the lure of unimaginable riches still attracts new explorers, including the hearty Norse. Models painted by Matthew (squared_paints). Listen to our interview with Matthew here!

Norse Hunter. Model painted by Matthew (squared_paints).

Dillon (voidhalation) created an amazing cityscape board for the event, complete with tiny lights throughout. It was his first attempt to make a board, and he handily took the first-place prize for best board at the event!

Another shot of Dillon’s (voidhalation) board, with one of the moody green lights visible. Listen to our interview with Dillon here!

Necromancers continue to be lured to the streets of Mordheim; the supply of bodies to reanimate is seemingly limitless. Models painted by Justin (justinshobbyposting).

Vampire. Model painted by Justin (justinshobbyposting).

A savage brawl transpires in the dank streets of Mordheim. Models painted by Stefano (eldermoss3) and Justin (justinshobbyposting).

Winning second place for the contestants' favorite board was a fantastic one, which was a collaborative effort by blerzcraft and durzin_miniatures. The board featured a lot of verticality and was filled with elements that would light up, as well as a mist machine. It was the perfect place to set up your models for atmospheric photos!

The Sisters of the Black Chalice (Harry - oldworldpaintedblood) bring their blessed hammers to bear on a possessed monstrosity (Yoel - sallet_hobby).

The Sisters of the Black Chalice. Models painted by Harry (oldworldpaintedblood).

Chaos Dwarf of the Ever-Gaolers of Mörkt Torn. Model painted by Michael (michaelcwiatrak_art).

Crumbling Crossroads was one of our favorite boards at the event. Expertly crafted by Michael Wiatrak (michaelcwiatrak_art), the board was a complicated array of crumbling stonework, wooden walkways, and hanging gibbets. Matt took inspiration from Giovanni Battista Piranesi‘s Imaginary Prisons copper etchings (very fitting imagery for Mordheim!).

Rattenfänger of the undead retinue of Vlad Dracul. Model painted by Chris (pied_pewter_piper).

Reiklanders (fowlerpaintsstuff) explore the ruined minerettes of Mordheim (board made by Terry Regan - stone.jaw).

As hired wizards come, few can match the hard-won experience of Sarek the Gathering Dark. Twenty years of venturing into the blasted ruins of Mordheim have left an indelible mark on the warlock. Model painted by Sam (cupboard_of_shame).

The skeletal hordes inhabiting Mordheim’s streets grow more numerous with each passing day! Model painted by Tim (howlingmad_looping).

Despite the corruption inflicted by the wyrdstone comet, forests persist in Mordheim. This amazing forested board was created by bitsbibsorks.

Magister Alír, leader of the Cult of the Thousandfold Thought. Model painted by Josh (crooked_weaver).

A beleaguered ogre (pied_pewter_piper) battles for survival against a Horror of Tzeentch (crooked_weaver) in the burned-out shell of an inn.

From the distant lands of Kislev, the Karamazov family enters Mordheim intent on gaining fame and fortune! Patriarch Fyodor ‘the Bear’ Karamazov leads his sons Ivan and Alexei into the midst of battle, eager for them to prove their worth and resolve to the family. Models painted by Jordan (jodomycelium).

Streltsi of the Karamazov family survey their surroundings, rifles at the ready. Models painted by Jordan (jodomycelium).

Our Lady Ov Carnage was a spectacular board created by Yoel (sallet_hobby) that featured a massive stone statue with exposed and bloody organs. A cult was formed around the gory edifice that collects corpses to offer to the statue (in the misguided hope that they can awaken the statue). Listen to our interview with Yoel here, where he talks about the board!

Another image of Yoel’s (sallet_hobby) remarkable board. This one gives a sense of the scale of the creation as it channels the madness of paintings by the likes of Hieronymus Bosch and Pieter Bruegel the Elder.

Our Lady Ov Carnage (sallet_hobby) also featured a range of different buildings, including this impressive windmill. The board was well-loved by the participants of the Mordheim event, winning third place for the best board of the event!

Pistol in hand, a Witch hunter surveys an abandoned street. Model painted by Stefano (eldermoss3). Listen to our interview with Stefano here!

Blessed be the sick! All hail the dissenters. Model painted by Brian (rojasnoirlac).

Count Orlok, the Nosferatu. Moel painted by Chris (pied_pewter_piper).

The Kislev Astrologers enter Mordheim under the light of a baleful moon. Model painted by Gray (schlubcinema). Listen to our interview with Gray here!

One of Trent’s (miscast.co) horrific daemons, floating through the decimated streets of Mordheim, backlit by an ominous moon.

Similar to previous years, the event featured several impressive trophies to celebrate the efforts of the hobbyists in attendance.

The award winners at the New England Mordheim Open.

Saturday evening culminated with a series of fantasy ambient performances by a myriad of dungeon synth artists. The first set was by Gabe’s (nile_nellie) project, Taconic Peaks. It was a soothing and somber performance, which was punctuated by a brief foray into harshness to keep listeners on their toes.

The Brooklyn, New York synthesizer and guitar duo Chipped Topaz channeled the thrill of hack-and-slash role-playing games like Diablo 2. It took me back to my teenage years, toiling away at the family desktop computer, banishing undead legions in cursed graveyards and hoping for more gemstones to socket into the weapons of my barbarian.

Sepulchral Blood filled the room with a cool and soft-spoken malevolence where you could almost feel blood congealing in an ornamental chalice for some unhallowed rite.

Steaming Woodlands brought a sense of wonder and optimism to those in attendance, making me want to put down the camera and get caught up in a roleplaying game session.

Ozeregroth was one of the dungeon synth artists that played Under the Dice fest 2024, so it was exciting to see their return. Their hooded figure and corpse paint was memorable and a welcome supplement to the melancholic tones, which swept us away to forlorn and forgotten structures.

The headlining performance of the evening was Unsheathed Glory, a Boston, Massachusetts-based dungeon synth artist who had performed at Under the Dice Fest 2024 (which had been the first live performance with the project). The entirety of those at the Elks Lodge were entranced by Unsheathed Glory’s musical skills as he deftly traversed his two keyboards and channeled vistas of forgotten realms.

- Adam and Greg Wier